Delinquent Christmas, Mistletoe and Baby Steps
by Felix Laforet
Summary: Nice decides to celebrate Christmas with the gang and asks Chane to invite Felix. On the other hand, Firo is finally alone with Ennis. (Secret Santa 2014)


**A/N** : Last year I wrote this as a present and after editing it, I decided to upload it here. Have fun!

It was finally December and Christmas literally just around the corner. Nice observed as the dark street and the houses were slowly colored white. The sight of the snowfall and the warmth inside the room had made her go into some form of trance, but a sudden thought pulled her out of it.

"Oh, why don't we celebrate Christmas?"

Nice turned her gaze away from the window and looked at Jacuzzi. He was sitting on the sofa next to her, and his smile was all the agreement she needed. She doubted anyone would refuse her proposal, although it was on short notice, especially since Jacuzzi liked the idea so much. But Nice was sure many of their friends would look forward to a Christmas celebration as well. All of their previous celebrations had been great, but they had been rare for different reasons and the locations they had used weren't exactly cozy. It was difficult to find a place to stay for so many people, so of course they hardly had the chance to be together like this. It would be such a waste to not take advantage of this fancy mansion.

Some hours later everyone was informed and convinced. Fang and John had resisted in the beginning because the mansion still belonged to their employer Eve Geonard. Nice had to promise them, nothing would be destroyed and they surely wouldn't disturb the neighbors. Only then they had finally agreed.

"Alright", Nice clapped in her hands to get everyone's attention. "Shut up, guys. We need to decide who's going to do what."

When all of their friends were quiet, they gave everyone a task. Chane was the last one and Nice had special plans for her. She hadn't told anyone about this yet, not even Jacuzzi, but even if they knew, they wouldn't dare be against it. First of all it was for Chane who practically never asked for anything. Secondly the task itself involved a certain someone no one would dare mess with.

"I think, it would be nice to invite Felix. After all he has helped us out before and you two are friends, right?" Nice knew that Chane and Felix were turning more and more into lovebirds, but she thought it was too early to openly comment on it. "Would you invite him? I'm sure, he will be happy to receive the invitation from you."

Chane was all eyes, but it clearly was a wonderful surprise. Nice smiled and suggested to ask Felix as soon as possible. A few hours later the doorbell chimed and her fiance asked Chane out for a walk. Nice watched as the couple left for the park and she was glad the snowfall wasn't so bad anymore. Chane was always looking forward to meet Felix.

Felix and Chane chose their usual route through the park. The sun was about to go down, so only few adults were still around to enjoy the snowy afternoon. Chane was as always a vision of delight. Hundreds of snowflakes had fallen down on her hair. Felix was certain, she was the prettiest in the world and since Felix wasn't one to hide his feelings, he made sure to let her know. He was delighted to discover the blush spreading across her face.

"So what is it you want to tell me?"

They paused and looked across the pond which was covered with a thin ice layer. Chane lowered her eyes with a smile. It didn't take Felix long to realize what she had in mind.

"Thank you for the invitation! It would be my honor to join you and your friends tomorrow evening." Oh, how would he love to give her a kiss! But he deemed it to be still too early. Felix didn't want to do something Chane didn't like or wasn't ready for. He made do with a long and tender hug which was happily returned.

There had been a time she knew Christmas vaguely from watching people celebrate it. Ennis was glad these days were over because she found Christmas wonderful. This year would be even more enjoyable because Isaac and Miria were in New York. It was always good news for the Martillo family to have Isaac and Miria around, so there had been no need for an official invitation. Today they spent time with Czeslaw. Ennis had invited them to come along with them but they were really eager to teach Czeslaw who didn't know how to ice skate. Thus Ennis had left the speakeasy with Firo as her only company but she didn't mind it. She liked to spend time with Firo and felt really comfortable around him.

Firo on the other hand didn't feel quite so comfortable right now. Here he was with the woman he loved, but he wasn't allowed to view it as date. His love was currently unrequited – being called _brother_ by Ennis left no doubt. They also hadn't done anything remotely romantic so far which would've enabled Firo to at least imagine as if they were a couple. He sighed. All they were out for was to run errands for Christmas. Surely, his friends had meant well to leave them alone or else someone would've come along. Isaac and Miria even abducted Czeslaw in order for Firo to have a little togetherness with Ennis. However, it was no use if Ennis didn't feel the same way. It could be the perfect moment to confess his love. But he was unable to do it. Just a glance at Ennis' completely unsuspecting face was enough to turn him into a coward. She wasn't nervous and was sure as hell expecting nothing. But he couldn't blame Ennis. Love matters weren't something she was familiar with. It was his own fault for falling head over heels in love with her – although he didn't regret it.

A love confession was out of question, but Firo would be damned if he didn't experience a tiny bit of romance today. Maybe it would give Ennis another hint which would make it easier for him to someday conquer her heart. However, Firo had no clue what they could do together which wasn't too embarrassing and still romantic. In the end he took the safest route and made the suggestion to warm themselves up in a cafe. "It's my treat," he added. It was already dark and he was certain no matter which place they decided to go to, there would be candlelight to welcome them.

"Shouldn't we return?"

"Why? It's still early and we're both adults," although they didn't really look the part, it was true nonetheless. Firo felt his cheeks glow as he realized what he had blurted out. His heart beat like crazy and it was perhaps the first time, he was glad Ennis had no clue what his words implied. She didn't have much of a reaction. It took him a few seconds to calm down. "I mean, we've run the errands and deserve a reward. It's also still a long way back, although we will return by taxi. Anyway, I think we should warm up first of all."

It seemed Ennis had still second thoughts about it. Firo dragged her along, before she could voice them. They arrived at a fancy cafe far away from the main road. It was quiet at first, but as they approached the entrance Firo could hear music. A lot of people – especially couples or he at least suspected them to be couples – were sitting inside. It took them a while to find a free table in a corner. Only for a second Firo thought it would be best to leave right away because he spotted his red-headed childhood friend at a place by the window. Firo thought what an embarrassment it would be if Claire talked to Ennis and revealed Firo's feelings for her. However, Claire didn't seem to care about anybody else right now. He was with his fiance, Chane, and they were clearly occupied with each other. No threat at all. Well, not much of a threat. Their presence did remind him of what he didn't have and he was filled with envy.

It was finally Christmas Eve now and Chane had spent her time so far watching the clock, then shifting her gaze to the entrance door. Claire was late. Nobody except her seemed to mind his delay. She wasn't worried nor was she angry. She knew he would return to her eventually without even a scratch. However, it was the question of when that bothered her. It was more disappointment she felt. Nobody had told him to be here at nine o'clock sharp in the evening. Perhaps it was her own fault that she had expected him to be here as soon as the celebration started because she had expected him to be so excited to see her that he couldn't wait to come here.

"Hey Chane, Dinner is getting cold," it was Nice.

Chane turned around to face her and she spotted pity in her feature. "I'm sure, Felix will come soon. So why don't you join us at the dining room?"

Chane could smell the feast from here and it smelt good. But she didn't want to start without Claire, so she tried to tell this to Nice.

Her friend smiled. "Fine. If it's because of him you have to eat something cold later on, I'll give him a good beating." It was an impossible deed, Nice knew and so did Chane, but it were words of comfort anyway.

Maybe around five minutes later there was a soft knock on the door. Chane took a deep breath and opened the door. Happiness run through her when she looked at Claire. Chane had to fight back a little smile as she saw the expression on his face. He was happy, ashamed of himself and probably feeling very cold. He was almost entirely covered in snow. Chane stopped him before he could utter a word of the apology apparently waiting on the tip of his tongue. She didn't want to waste anymore time hearing explanations and excuses. Chane wanted to spend their first Christmas together in happiness.

After peeling himself off his coat and getting the snow off, he wrapped his arms around Chane. A whisper in her ear, a strange husky tone she didn't know yet: "I know, you don't want to hear excuses and I personally think my delay can't be excused, but you still need to know what made you wait. I just didn't think buying something would cut it, so…"

Chane felt her whole body getting hot all of a sudden. This was…different than usual. Felix on the other hand was enjoying her warmth because he was freezing to the bone. He didn't release her yet, but he put a short distance between their faces, so she could see what was hanging from his hand above them: a mistletoe.

"I hope you're a familiar with this tiny custom or else my efforts to find this little fellow were in vain, and…maybe this would turn out to be a little surprise…," he pressed his lips onto hers and Chane got weak at her knees for the first time in her life.

"What a smooth bastard," Nice whispered as she and Jacuzzi stood in the door frame. Accidentally, they had become witnesses of the couple's first kiss. "Damn, I wonder if he really didn't buy that mistletoe. I can't believe he was searching around for a naturally grown mistletoe."

"Nice, I don't think, we should…"

"Ah, this is so nice…Where is my mistletoe, Jacuzzi?"

Jacuzzi looked around nervously. "Ah…you know…"

Nice chuckled. "It's fine, you naughty boy. You can pay me back later once it's just the two of us…"

Jacuzzi blushed and wondered who really was the naughty one of them. He gave her a quick kiss and dragged her away from Chane and Felix. "Yeah, I will. I love you the most."

"I love you more, Jacuzzi."

Firo enjoyed the celebration within his circle of friends. Although they normally did without presents, Firo had bought something for Ennis and Czeslaw – they were his flatmates after all. In addition these two didn't seem to have celebrated a lot of Christmas before. Czeslaw received a toy airplane from Firo and seemed to like it, making a little boy happy was easy. Firo had been at a true loss when it came to choosing a gift for Ennis. Firo wasn't certain if she would be pleased with a necklace no matter how modest in appearance it was. He had fought with himself to buy it and he still was nervous as he gave the small box to Ennis.

"I'm sorry, I don't have anything for you, I can't accept this present – but I'm grateful."

"Oh, I don't mind. Please accept it."

Both were blushing, maybe for the same reason, maybe not. Probably not. That was just wishful thinking on his part. It was likely still strange for her to receive presents from other people. Isaac and Miria had made her presents ever since they knew each other, but Firo had been too shy to give her a present last time. "I mean, except you dislike it."

"N – no," Ennis replied, although she hadn't even opened it yet. This situation was plain awkward. They even sighed at the same time. "Anyway, I'll make it up to you. What would make you happy?"

When he saw the little blush on her face, Firo wasn't sure what more he could ask of her. This was his chance, wasn't it? All he needed was courage. "How about a little trip sometime…or something?" That wasn't exactly how he wanted to express himself. "I-I mean…just the two of us…"

"Sounds good," she was smiling and Firo hugged her without thinking. They heard Isaac, Miria and others cheering them on. It sure was embarrassing, but Ennis and especially Firo didn't wish to end the embrace yet. So they remained like this for what seemed like forever and both thought to themselves that this moment was the best of presents they could receive. Maybe for the same reason, maybe not.


End file.
